Spice-mill.



R. F. CLINE.

SPICE MILL.

APrLIoATIoN FILED JUNE 21, 1911.

Patented June 18, 1912.

COLUMBIA PLANDURAPH co.,w/\SmNnroN. D. c.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT F. CLINE, 0F MONETA, CALIFORNIA.

SPICE-MILL.

Patented June 1s, 1912. Serial N o. 634,626.

LZQ, '792. Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 21, 1911.

To all whom t may concern:

` Be it known that I, ROBERT F. CLINE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Moneta, in the county of Los Angeles and Stat-e of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Spice-Mills, of which the following isa specification.

In a previous patent of mine, 973,761, Cctober 25, `1910, I have shown a spice mill in which the spice were cut into a finely divided state without bruising or crushing the particles, and the present invention is to provide improvements therein, one object being to improve the cutting devices, another object being to screen the spices which have passed through the cutters` raised by the elevators, whereby those particles which are sufficiently fine will be separated from the coarser particles and the latter only returned to the cutting' devices for further cutting.

Further objects and advantages will be brought out in the following description.

Referring to the drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation of the mill. Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the mill. Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section on line mg Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section on line 4`w4 Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on line Uc5-5 Fig. 3. Fig'. 6 is a perspective of one of the dies. Fig. 7 is a vertical sect-ion through the cutting devices in the same plane as Fig. 3, showing a modified form.

1 designates the lower section of the casing.

2 designates the upper section of the casing, and 3 is a shaft journaled therein. Keyed on the shaft 3 are cutter plates 4 which are spaced apart by spacing plates 5. The cutter plates 4 are formed with teeth 6, which, as the shaft 3 revolves, pass between stationary dies 7, the teeth 6 closely fitting the spaces between the dies 7. The spacing plates 5 are circular and clear the dies 7. Between the teeth 6 are shorter teeth 8.

9 is a hopper for feeding the spice to t-he cutters. The spice falls from the hopper 9 against the dies 7 and the teeth 6 in re volving out through the particles with a the severed particles pass be-V tween the dies. 7 and are caught by a screen 10.

As clearly shown in Fig. 5, the cutting plates are arranged so that the teeth 6 of the respective cutting plates are spirally arranged. This gives a more uniform cutting action and prevents the abrupt shock to the machine which would result if all cutting edges were in line and simultaneously operating.

The dies 7 are held in place by a wedge 11 which may be removed when it is desired to remove the dies. The wedge 11 also enables the dies to be very easily adjusted. The screen 10 is `held at one edge below the dies 7 while its other edge is supported by a flange 12. By loosening the wedge 11 the adjacentA edge of the screen l() may be detached and by removing the upper section of the casing 2 t-he screen may be lifted out.

In the modified form shown in Fig. `7, the casing 1a is formed of a. single casting, and the screen 10a is held at each edge in the casting. To remove the screen in this form, the casting is provided with a semi-circular slot 13 through which the screen may be withdrawn. The spices after passing through the mill are conducted through a -chute 13 to an elevator 14 which lifts the cut spices and discharges them into a chute 15 down which they pass into a hopper 16 and from the hopper 16 they are delivered to a screen 17 through which those particles which are sufliciently small pass and fall into a hopper 18 and from thence into a receptacle 19. Those particles which are too large to pass through the screen 17 are carried down the screen and fall into the hopper 9 and again pass through the mill` The advantage 0f this is that particles which yare suiiiciently fine do not pass through the mill a second time, but after passing the screen 17 go directly into the receptacle 19. This increases the capacity of the mill. The screen 17 is secured in a frame 20, the lower end of which rests slidably upon a block 21 while the other end is supported by a flexible strap 22 and is connected to an eccentric 23 which reciprocates the screen 17 and thus facilitates the screening of the spice and passage of the large particles down the screen into the hopper 9. A sliding baffle plate 24 is arranged in the throat 25 of the hopper 9 and the baffle plate 24 is reciprocated horizontally by a lever 26 operated from an eccentric 26, the baffle plate 24 serving to facilitate the passage of material from the hopper 9 through the throat 25 thereof. Immediately below the baffle plate 24 are two horse-shoe magnets 27. The spice after passing the baflie plate 24 front of the magnets 27, while any metallic particles which might be in the spice are attracted by the magnets 27 and thus prevented from getting into the mill and becoming mixed with the cut spice.

The shaft 3 of the mill has a pulley 28 which is Vconnected by a belt 29 with a pu ley 30 on the shaft 31 and another pulley 32 on shaft 31 is connected by a belt 33 with a pulley 34 on a shaft 35 on which the eccentric 23 is mounted and a sprocket 36 on shaft 35 is connected by chain 37 with a sprocket 38 on a shaft 39. The shaft 39 drives the elevator 1li.

What I claim is:

1. A shaft, a series of cut-ter plates on said shaft, each of said cutter plates having cutting teeth, the cutting edge of each tooth being substantially radial of the shaft, and the cutting edge of each tooth having a series of serrations, a series of dies lying pass down in Copies of this patent may he obtained for five cents each, by addressing the within the spaces between the said cutting plates, the cutting edges of said dies having a series of serrations.

2. A shaft, a series of cutter plates on said shaft, each of said cutter plates having cutting teeth, the cutting edge of each tooth being substantially radial of the shaft, and the cutting edge ofeach tooth having a series of serrations, a series of dies lying within the spaces between the said cutting plates the cutting edges of said dies ing a series of serrations, each cutter plate having shorter teeth intervening between its cutting teeth.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 15 day of June, 1911.

A ROBERT F. CLINE.

In presence of#d Gr. T. HAGKLEY, GLADYS RUSSELL.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, I). C.

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